In the world of hula, Hilo has the Merrie Monarch Festival and Honolulu has the Keiki Hula Competition. For the past 42 years, Keiki Hula has cultivated the next generation of hula dancers – some as young as five years old. The group competition kicks off tonight with traditional hula. HPR’s Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has this story.

Fourth of July festivities are set for tomorrow across the island chain to celebrate America’s 242nd birthday. On the grounds of the ‘Iolani Palace in Honolulu, one group is commemorating another July Fourth with a dramatic re-enactment of an event in Hawaiian history that took place a little more than a century ago. HPR’s Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has this story.

Some of the best – and often restricted – hiking trails in Hawaiʻi can only be accessed by members of Hawaiʻi's oldest hiking club. The Hawaiian Trail and Mountain Club has been around since 1910 and has developed quite a system for preserving access to island trails. HPR Reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi hit the trail with the club.

This Saturday, bicycles are ruling the roads in Kalihi Valley. The First Annual Kalihi Ahupuaʻa Bike Ride will give riders a chance to experience the valley like never before. HPR reporter Ku’uwehi Hiraishi went for a spin.

Momentum is building following Hōkūleʻa’s Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage. On Saturday, tens of thousands of people turned out to welcome the canoe home from its three year around the world voyage. And that includes some who took part in that journey. HPR’s Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi spoke with one family whose life was changed by their experiences with Hōkūleʻa.

The Kāneʻohe Neighborhood Board is considering a resolution about the future of the popular yet illegal Haʻikū Stairs. The U.S. Coast Guard closed the trail also known as Stairway to Heaven in 1987, but the hikers keep coming.

The impact of illegal hiking activity on the trailhead community in Haʻikū is coming to a head, and one group believes reopening the trail is the answer. HPR News' Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi reports.

Supplying enough recreation for its residents and the revolving door of tourists is an official task of the state Nā Ala Hele program. The trail and access program manages the state's hiking inventory and maintains all state-sanctioned trails across the island chain. HPR reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has more.

Libraries are popping up across the country, but they’re not lending books. They’re lending tools. The HNL Tool Library is part of a nationwide movement prioritizing access to tools over ownership. Tool library director and local entrepreneur Elia Bruno is on a mission to connect often underused tools with the people who need them. HPR Reporter Ku’uwehi Hiraishi spoke with Bruno and takes us on a tour of the tool library.

A recent national poetry competition was set against the backdrop of political debates. President Trump’s proposed budget calls for cuts to agencies that fund the arts. Hawai’i high school student Nicholas Amador represented the state and reflects on poetry and politics in the nation’s capital. HPR’s Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has this report.

A school name change on Oʻahu is raising awareness in that community about the origin of place names in Hawaiʻi. The Governing Board for Lanikai Elementary Public Charter School has decided to revive the traditional place name for the land beneath the school. HPR Reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has more.

Maui County Parks are going organic. A pilot project to create pesticide-free county parks is underway on the Valley Isle. Over the next year, the county will learn what it takes to implement an organic land management program. And they will do so at no cost to Maui taxpayers. HPR’s Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi reports.

Scientists studying sea level rise at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa need your help. Impacts of some of our highest tides of the year are predicted to be seen this week. And the general public is being summoned to document those impacts along the thousand or more miles of coastline across the island chain. HPR reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi explains how anyone with a smartphone and coastline access can contribute to science.

Natives are recolonizing urban Honolulu. Native birds, that is. The white tern or Manu O Kū is thriving in Hawaiʻi’s most populous city, and so is its fan base – the Hui Manu O Kū. HPR reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi joined a group of white tern enthusiasts on a bird expedition in downtown Honolulu.